Suggestions for handling this cold snap....

I've been worried about my chickens with this cold weather, but my husband and brother-in-law poo-pooed me. And, as I received my flock from the BIL (who's been keeping a flock for years) I guess I'll just keep on doing what I have been doing:

--Keeping them inside the coop with lots of good bedding (hay and shavings) allowed to compost all winter. I stir up the old and cover it with fresh shavings.

--Fresh water first thing in the AM, early afternoon if I can, and early PM.

--Scratch every morning.

--Plenty of pellets.

--Treats every day: greens, cooked oatmeal, occasional suet, stale bread, leftovers (they love pork chops!).

So far they seem fine, and I try to spend some time with them to see if there are any signs of distress. So far, so good. But I sure do worry--I wouldn't want to be living "outside" in three degree weather!

Thanks to all who posted their strategies for coping with the cold temps. I may end up overruling the DH and putting in a 250 watt light or something--even if it only serves to make me feel less guilty.

Amy

 

The chickens, turkeys and goats have seemed to be smart enough to stay in their coops or shed when it's snowing or raining. The ducks on the other hand are the dumb ones they stay in the rain and the snow. I just leave them be. I suppose they'll come in when they get cold enough. I did loose one hen to the cold weather but she was 8 years old. I have uped the protein for the chickens by giving them BOSS because they've been molting and because it has been so cold for so long.

 

Last night it was supposed to get down to 6F here. I was keeping ym expectant doe seperate from the buck and wether, but I checked her to see if she was close. I tarped their stall, added lots and lots of fresh bedding, and put all three together. They snuggled together and slept just fine.

The stupid chickens, who sleep outside in the enclosed run even though they have lovely, warm, draft free coops, FINALLY went inside the coops last night. Oy. I used to try and round them up into the coop, but it was like herding....well, chickens.

 

bbRedMom: Ditto for me.... I have a goat house, a horse stall w/heater and a chicken coop that has a heat lamp and a 60watt bulb for the 6 wk old babies and it seems all but one or two sleep in the open barn somewhere.....

I did notice that the goats prefer the chicken coop floor to their house but it's not big enough for all 4 especailly with the 3 does getting bigger and bigger with their babies.... go figure....

 

Hi all. I haven't done anything really special, besides making sure they have plenty of water (I have a heater for the water) and feed, full nest boxes of straw, etc. 1 hen and roo rarely leave the coop, the other hen and roo peck around in their enclosure off and on during the day. Here in Southern Illinois (30 mi. from St. Louis) it's been 0 degrees w/ -10 or so wind chill, but I still get an egg or 2 every day.

I also had a "visitor" in the coop last night -- SKUNK! Guess it was too cold for the skunk, too -- didn't do anything to the chickens or the egg that was laid, but was just hunkered down in the straw NOT really thrilled about being asked to leave (by me). He/she eventually left of it's own accord before 9pm, but I really hated leaving the outside chicken door open all that time in these temps. Chickens seem none the worse for wear, though.

Gwen

 

I finally bought a "real" heat bulb yesterday for one coop- the other has an electric, oil-filled radiator. I don;t heve any goats, sigh.... but my sister once had 3 goats in her kitchen for a week! She said cooking was Verrrry interesting....

 

We have two 250-watt infrared heat lamps hanging above their roosting area. I feed them lots of treats: corn (canned, fresh), scratch, yogurt, beans and legumes, leftovers, stale bread (one of their faves!), fruits (no citrus), etc. We change their water every morning and dump out the riff raff water every afternoon. We're doing the "deep litter" thing and with a partially insulated (three walls) coop and the heat lamps, at the outside -20 degree temp at night the coop stays in the mid-+20's. The water froze during the night but right now with the temp outside at 13 (high temp for the day!) the coop where the heat lamps are is registering at 40. I haven't been letting them outside in the run with the super-cold weather and don't want to leave the pop door open to keep the coop warmer. They are restless but still laying almost all of them every day.

 

My 5 goaties are fine. They have a house DH built and its full of straw. Plus they have thick,wooly hair. I have some seramas that I haven't had for long so I was worried about them. They had a propane heater running and I tarped their pen. My Key West chickens I had tarped too but their heater quit during the night. Everyone was fine. It got down to about 13 here, and that's cold for us.